The Chronicles of the Toa War: Book 1
by Vorox1027
Summary: For ages, they were silenced. The Toa from planet earth were not needed, simply tossed. But in the year 2050, they may be its last hope. This starts VERY slow, so hang on. T for future Violence (will contain future editing; It will also come in 3 parts) NOTE: as of 11/2/13, chapter 2 has received an update. If you want to, re-read
1. 1-1: Time passes

**CHAPTER 1-1: Time Passes**

* * *

**Spain, 1510**

The one known as Adan looked out of his ornate home. Outside, the hum of children and adults alike signified the time of day when the Roman Catholic people would go to the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral and worship their god. According to the century - old religious law, all citizens were required to go.

But he didn't like rules very much.

Giving a furtive look outside the windows, he crept back into his house onto one of his many carefully woven carpets. He then, still watching the windows, lifted the carpet to reveal a small trap door. He opened the door and slid in, careful to cover it with carpet again.

He appeared in a small room - his workshop. There were tables lining the place, with various objects such as saws, hammers, every type of nail, every type of silk color, and even silk itself. There were other things, of course, but it has been such a long time that he had lost track of what was down here a long while ago.

He crept towards a small desk with a quill pen and ink. His writing desk, one he used to send messages all over the globe, all the time. However, he didn't want to write right now. He instead took a small piece of parchment that lay next to his blank pages, one that looked crude and had hard - to - read handwriting. He looked over it for what seemed like the hundredth time:

_May 20, 1506_

_My savior,_

_14 years ago I said I was going to die. I guess I was right. The doctors...they said they cannot do anything more to help me. I have pains all over my body, and every breath is like fire. But, at least, there is some light in this dark time._

_I...found it. After all these years, the objective is finally safe. The fate of the world is finally secured. I sent it to you in the brown box laced with red silk. You can protect it now, since I did my end of the deal._

_I grow tired...this will be the last anyone ever hears from me. There are only hours of my life that remain, so I must say one more thing: you know what I said when I left on my fourth voyage to the new world as a way of saying goodbye, "Although my body is here my heart is always near you"?_

_Well, I guess, I can say that about you too._

_When I was lost, when I was considered the mad man who had crazy dreams, you showed me the way. You were the one who gave me something to live for, something that would mean something in the far future. You said I could save the world._

_I love you like a brother. And for all I know, you could have been another one of my brothers._

_I wish you a long life, one I was not given. And...I thank you for all this. I couldn't have done this without you._

_Farewell,_

_Christopher Columbus_

Adan set down the letter, a small tear in his eye. He hadn't known Columbus was dead until 10 months later, when the doctors found the note in his hospital room. When he was given the letter, he never forgave himself.

He was so ignorant. He didn't deserve to be called a savior. The world was in danger and he neglected the one being that was supposed save it. As a result, the person who watched the turn of events has to take that burden.

However he couldn't think about that now; he had another thing to ponder about.

He walked over to another table, one that had a small wooden box that was lined with ornate red colored silk. Carefully, he un - weaved the silk around a small handle attached to the box. After he did that, he took the handle and pulled, sliding the lid off the box.

He reached in and picked up a curious item - a small golden pocket watch. This had to be the so - called "objective" that Columbus gave his life to recover. To any other person, it may just seem like another gold plated artifact, but it was just the opposite. Inside the watch, lies the key to unlocking the biggest tomb that ever existed. Its existence was kept a secret by those who were here before humans, and in turn was kept hidden by a select few who understood its importance for countless decades. However, that will change in 540 years.

He looked at another object on the table, a map of the entire world. He looked at the regions that were marked, correspondingly, with red and white laced silk. Oceana, Europe, Canada, and South America laced with white; Asia, The rest of North America, Africa, and Central America laced with red.

He wondered what events would take place, what distant humans would guard the watch, what secrets that the world would struggle to keep hidden for eons to come, and what fate the world will suffer if something bad happens. A lot of good can happen in that time span, and a lot of things can also go wrong.

But one thing must happen if earth is going to survive; one thing the whole world must know if the future shall live in peace and harmony.

On January 1, 2050, the whole world must know about the tomb of the Toa.

* * *

**Egypt, 1923**

Howard Carter felt his way along the stone walls of the tomb. He could hardly breathe; either from the excitement of finally being in the tomb of the fabled King Tutankhamen or from the overabundance of sand and dust in the air.

Probably Both.

He was very careful not to disturb any more dust piles than he could handle as he navigated the tomb. He was here once, a mere year ago, with the rest of his team. He can always remember the things that happened.

_He broke a small portion of the doorway and a lit candle inside the tomb was showing the vastness of the space._

_Hieroglyphics and artwork was shown through the dim light._

_His team asked him, "Can you see anything?"_

_"Yes", he said, "wonderful things."_

Wonderful things indeed.

What his team didn't know was that he was planning to come back one year later in the dead of night...and finish what he started with the door.

He already had a backup door that was near-identical to the old one to cover his tracks. And, as a fail - safe, he made sure that whoever approached the door got a nasty headache. He still grinned at the thought of hitting someone with knock - out gas.

After venturing through more of the tomb, he eventually found another door, along with some ornate markings of jackals and pharaohs. With a little force, he easily opened it. After he dusted himself off, he scanned the room for anything of importance.

Then, he saw it.

The coffin of King Tut.

He took two latex gloves out of his pack, applying them to his hand. Then, he carefully and steadily moved the lid of the coffin off the top, making sure it didn't break. Then, he marveled at the tiny figure of the boy king that live here for more than three - thousand years.

However, he was more interested in what he was holding in his hand. Some clever person applied it on the mummy for safekeeping, no doubt, but whoever did it probably didn't think someone would ever find it. He grabbed it, trying not to break the fragile bone, replaced the coffin lid, and ran back to the entrance. He applied the fake door on the open entrance then ran as fast as he could across the Valley of the Kings.

He arrived at the small hotel he checked into the previous night. He was greeted by the clerk at the front desk.

"How was your trip, sir?" He said.

Howard was careful not to reveal much of his excited emotion. "It went well," He simply replied. Then he ran up to his room and celebrated his victory...very loudly. The entire hotel could quite literally hear all his rambling, and the clerk smiled in amusement.

To the clerk, Howard was just an ordinary person who had a great time. However, that clerk didn't care to see what Carter's hand held.

A tiny, golden pocket watch.

And a map of the whole world, with areas colored red and white.

* * *

**Sydney, 2042**

The figure sat in his chair, impatient. He has waited for this meeting for a long time, and now he was anxious to know what his boss had to say.

The small screen in front of him suddenly flickered to life. Another figure stared through the pixels at the other individual.

"Hello, Agent Lambda," the figure in the screen said, "good to see you."

Lambda straightened himself up. "Hello, Alpha. I presume this is about the objective?"

"Yes, Lambda," Alpha said, "It's about the objective. And its guardians."

Lambda flinched at this. He's heard of the guardians before - those who watched and protected the objective with their life. Figures like Christopher Columbus, George Washington_,_ Martin Luther King Jr., Howard Carter...and small figures that faded out in people's memories as fast as they came.

Alpha continued. "According to the tree, you were the next. And you have been protecting the objective for 4 years, correct?"

Lambda nodded. He recalled who gave it to him; Agent Zeta. Before he left to go to America, he trusted the care of the objective to Lambda. Recently, they found out that Zeta died from a disease in his brain. Through thorough research, it was found not to be accidental.

"We need to discuss what it is about, this...objective," Alpha said. "You wonder exactly what its importance is, no?"

Lambda, reluctantly, nodded. "Okay," Alpha continued ,"This is the key to something that was sealed off, never to be seen again. The contents of this...tomb...can save us in our dire time of need. The objective, as it's foretold, must be destroyed on the new year of 2050. It will release energy that can destroy the tomb and release the things trapped within. They are called-" Alpha hesitated before saying, "they are called - the Toa. Master of the elements. They will save us in our time of need."

Lambda, stunned by all the sudden explanation, said, "Why are you telling me this, Alpha, and why now? Also, why so blunt?"

Alpha was quiet for a long time. Then he said, "Because whatever is coming is coming now. I need you to be prepared." Then, as soon as he said that, the screen flickered off.

Lambda was trying to comprehend all the information and thoughts in his head. _Toa? What is that? What elements? Why 2050? What energy is released? Where is the tomb? __What's going to happen that defies all reasoning?_

His thoughts were interrupted by a sound at the door. It almost sounded like...growling

He cautiously went over to the door and creaked it open. He saw nothing but a small piece of paper on the ground. He picked it up and saw writing on it. What it said nearly stopped his heart.

_If you defy the will of a king, then your future will be worse than it already is._

He knew immediately what that meant.

He ran to his room, fearing the worse, and saw that the door has been knocked off its hinges. He then entered to see everything, his documents, his supplies, his contact materials - all knocked down and some destroyed. He looked around the room furiously to see if anything was taken. He struggled to remember what was in there, but then, he realized with dread what he couldn't find.

The pocket watch was gone.

And so was the map.

* * *

**Present Day**

_**Ten minutes to 2050.**_

The automated voice spoke out to the only being in the house.

The figure sat on her couch, hoping to wait out the ten minutes in peace. She picked up a small object, a gold plated pocket watch, from her lap. She gripped it in her hands. Soon, this little thing will change the world. She recalled what happened in the past 7 years; War, Famine, Death, and the rise of two mighty armies that show no sign of giving cease-fire. That will all change soon.

She looked to her right and saw her best friend, a golden retriever. Funny. A golden retriever retrieving a golden watch. And that growl...icing on the sweet revenge cake. Carter should have left that watch with the king. The entire world was nearly in peril and he stole the only thing that would stop it. He paid the price; they all did.

**_Five minutes to 2050._**

The figure gripped the watch a little harder. The dog went to his master, whimpering, when she started to sweat. She had to carry this burden for seven years, and now it will finally be lifted. The tomb of the Toa will be opened.

But that isn't why she was sweating. What if this goes wrong? What if the legends were a lie, if the Toa fail at their mission? She couldn't comprehend all this. She couldn't afford it, time wise or mentally.

_**One minute to 2050.**_

The dog and her tensed up upon hearing that message. She gripped the watch harder; the dog left the room and started pacing.

_**Thirty seconds to 2050.**_

She took a small glass of wine - her celebratory drink - and raised it into the air. "I'd like to make a toast," she said to herself, "to new beginnings. To a new era of human history."

_**Ten seconds to 2050.**_

She drank a large gulp. She held the golden watch, knowing what she had to do.

**_Zero seconds to 2050. Happy new year._**

"Happy new year, indeed." she said.

She dropped the watch and put her foot on it. Then, she stomped as hard as he could.

Lifting her foot, she saw what was left of the watch. Just a bunch of broken gears and shattered glass. There was one thing she knew at that moment.

Thousands of miles away, something reacted.


	2. 1-2: Beginnings

**CHAPTER 1-2: Beginings**

* * *

The plains of Coober Pedy, Australia, was silent. The underground homes there were caved in months ago, showing no sign that anyone lived there. The occasional cricket and kangaroo was all that was left.

A tall figure sat and meditated in the middle of this all. He was not any ordinary human; in fact, he could not be considered human anymore. His head and skull were gone, leaving the brain to be encased inside a very tough and menacing box-like machine. His lower legs and arms were also gone, replaced with high-tech prosthetics.

Another figure approached him. He had less body modifications, but they were still there; a robotic collar surrounded his neck along with prosthetic feet and hands. The larger one cursed from his meditation spot quite irritably, obviously annoyed at his disturbance. "What is it? This better be good, if you're really telling me in the middle of my meditation," He said in a raspy, cybernetic voice.

_We have gotten word from the border patrol, Captain,_ the small one said in an unknown language, far more complex than any original Earth one. _It is of the utmost urgency._

The captain turned his box head in a menacing manner. "What could be the matter that possibly is of concern to the Borogs, solider?" He asked.

The solider gulped nervously before continuing. _It's not a small problem. Our greatest fears may have come to pass._

The Captain, despite his one red eye always being emotionless, looked concerned. "What do you mean?"

_The Toa, sir_, the solider said with immense fear in his voice. _The Toa have returned._

The general had then suddenly become silent. He was absolutely stunned at what his solider had said. _The Toa...they are awake?, _He thought. _How is this possible?_

_Um...sir?_ the solder said, concerned at the Captain's sudden silence. _Are you okay_?

The Captain snapped out of his trance. "Yes, I'm okay. There is no need for concern."

The solider, relived, continued. _Well then, what do you propose we do about this situation? Are they going to be apprehended?_

The Captain then stood up from his meditation on his long legs, exposing his true height. He towered over the small solider, and may as well tower over anything that oppose him.

"Send a squad to capture them," He said. "They will be more than apprehended. These...Toa...will be brought to their knees."

He started to leave before saying one more thing."They will have to answer to Captain Stein."

* * *

Once, there had been a small cavern. The cavern, known today as the cavern of spirit due to people sometimes claiming to see ghosts, was generally undisturbed by nature. In fact, the rock was seemingly unbreakable. No matter how hard people tried, the rock would not give in. Not to drills, not to wrecking balls, not to acid, nothing.

But today, a curious hairline crack caught the attention of the Borog border patrol.

The Borogs were humans who adopted their own language, religion, and even their own government, based on robotics. They built countless drones, body modifications, and stellar churches just to name a few.

The border patrol that stumbled upon the cave was located at Sydney, Australia. The Borog spread to other places, of course; to be specific, Europe, Canada, The rest of Oceania, and South America. But since they started off in Australia, that is where they chose to live.

For years, the Borog have been known for their resilience and hard work. They were even thought to be so smart...to smart for their own good. However, the patrol was now stunned by the crack in the cavern of spirits. They have heard of its toughness, and they were gravely confused.

_Why is this?, _one of them asked. _There have never been a crack in the wall before. What happened?_

The others only shrugged, and one of them said, _We best tell Stein about this. It may be important._

The patrol started to leave, but then they heard crunching, Like rocks during a cave-in. They all turned and saw something truly shocking.

The wall of the cave collapsed. Rubble lined where the wall had been, scattered in every possible direction. Upon closer inspection, the crack was still visible on one of the rocks, so it couldn't have been the cause.

Then, they saw two eyes. Two glowing eyes that stared into their very souls.

Out of instinct, the patrol lifted their rifles and fired.

Then...

...

* * *

At first, Calico thought that being a Toa of magnetism was easy when his adversaries had metal weapons and were completely organic.

Now, he realized it was just pushing it to put him against organics that _were _part metal. He observed what was left of them. One had a head...somewhere...the others were decapitated. They didn't stand a chance; one magnetic disruption and they all just exploded.

Maybe he should have killed them all; that last one that got away could cause whispers of trouble if unchecked.

"We should have chased him down," A white and orange figure behind Calico pointed out. "That guy could cause whispers of trouble."

Calico turned to him, an annoyed expression on his kanohi Ruru. "For the hundred and tenth time, Eliza, _stop reading my mind with that damn mask."_

"Why? It's fun to see your face when I do!" Eliza said.

Calico rolled his eyes. Ever since Eliza, a Toa of plasma, got his hands on a great kanohi Suletu, he has had way too much fun with it. He would read peoples thoughts and say them out loud, like now, or just say something that someone is about to say before they say it. But what did he expect-Eliza has always been a trickster.

"I don't care if it's fun," an annoyed Calico said, "I don't care if I end up twisting your head off your body because of it. We don't have time for things like this."

Eliza just grinned as if what he had said was a joke. "Oh, lighten up, will you? I just took a nap for five thousand years and I'm bored! Sleeping is not fun, if you haven't noticed. It's not like you haven't."

Calico was about to argue back when a sudden thought popped in his head. "Wait, what year is it?"

"Um..." Eliza started. "We were put to sleep in...hm...1245 BC? Or is it AD? I don't know how human years work."

Calico sighed. "If it was AD, you dolt, then we would have been found out by now."

"Oh, right!" Eliza said. "So, it was 1245 BC...five thousand...4245 AD? No, that doesn't sound right...hm...okay I admit it, I'm stumped."

_This is going to be a long, boring hour, _Calico thought.

"No, wait!" Eliza said. "I'v got an idea! Wait...never mind."

Calico looked at Eliza once more. "If you even have a slight idea, I need to know it."

"Okay," Eliza said. "I was thinking...since we feel only a little tired, I figure it couldn't have been that long-only about three thousand years," He looked at Calico more intently. "And since this is Australia...I'm assuming...it wouldn't have changed in that time span. And then..." He leaped up and down excitedly, "Since there is no sign of decay on either of us...I'll make the assumption..." he stopped jumping, "That the year is 2050!"

Calico shook his head. "No, that doesn't sound right."

* * *

Inside the small control room, someone was observing the two Toa.

She was excited - no, thrilled - that the crushing of the watch worked. She was waiting for this day for a while, and it has finally come up.

She picked up her golden retriever and gave him a colossal bear hug. "I'm so excited, boy! We finally have a hope for this planet!" She let the dog down when he started to do a cross between a whimper and a bark.

She looked into the camera. In it, the two Toa were observing the remains of the dead soldiers. The orange and white one seemed to be scolding the black and grey one. She found out that he was angry at him for even _thinking _about scavenging the bodies, saying it was 'violating the dead'. The other responded that they needed to have supplies if they wanted to get moving.

She knew getting lip - reading lessons would pay off.

A few minutes ago, she saw that the orange and white Toa was trying to guess the year. They disagreed several times before finally deciding that the year was, indeed, 2050.

_Good guessers, _she thought. _Not very smart, but clever.__  
_

She leaned in her seat, a look of worry crossing her face. She needed to meet someone soon, and she hopes the meeting will go as planned.

Assuming that her 'client' doesn't try anything.

* * *

Stein crossed the Coober Pedy plains with a very irate gait. In his hands, he held two long, wooden stakes about as tall as him. On his shoulders, around his neck in very loose loops, were wrapped pieces of rope.

He planted the two stakes into the ground and placed three pieces of rope around each one. He then turned to his left, where one of his soldiers stood.

_The trap is set, sir, _the solider said in Borog.

Stein looked into the distance of Coober Pedy, imagining the two Toa being helplessly tied to the stakes, staring into their imminent doom.

"Good," he said, "now go out there and look out for the Toa. If it seems like they are going to get a move on, then spring the trap."

_Yes sir, _the solider said. _We shall prepare for that very event. _And with that, he was gone.

"We shall see who is stronger, Toa," Stein muttered under his breath. "Two cowards or an actual warrior."


	3. 1-3: The right intentions

**CHAPTER 1-3: The Right Intentions**

* * *

Eliza has thought of all the ways he could die on planet Earth before; sharks, poisonous spiders, a small canyon that was just waiting for a hapless visitor to meet their unfortunate demise.

One way he did not consider, however, was extreme boredom.

Their time walking in the Australian Outback was going on for an interminable amount of hours. There was nothing out there except desert, small trees, creatures that hop about, and holes in the ground. He wasn't sure about the holes, but they didn't look random. That made him uneasy.

Calico didn't make it any easier. He insisted that they leave before another patrol of...whatever those things were...came over there and found them. Two hours later, ZERO signs of those things around. Eliza started to think his brother was paranoid when he said they had to leave their home, Mata Nui, because he was worried of an unforeseen disaster. Now, he started to have those thoughts again.

This was, in his words, strike two.

A few hours ago, he looked into one of the holes to see if there was anything of interest. There wasn't anything except small white crystals, with a tad bit of red within each one. He was curious (and bored) so he decided to converse with Calico.

"Calico," He asked, "what are these things? Why are they in the holes?"

Calico turned to him and saw the crystals. He then said, "Those are opals. The ancients used to give us those as gifts."

Then, that was it. He continued walking.

Strike three.

* * *

Calico observed the landscape of the Australian "Outback", as the ancients called it. The holes filled with opals were everywhere, nearly making walking a difficult task. The hopping creatures were apparently very abundant in this area of Australia. So far, he must have seen at least twenty of them pass by him and his brother in the past few hours. They didn't seem to do much though; just look around and eat grass.

_only if I had that much peace, _he thought to himself. _Sleeping for thousands of years does no good to your nerves._

"Hey, Mr. get-a-move-on!" An annoyed voice said. "Why are we stopping now? What happened?"

Calico realized that he had stopped in his tracks. He turned to Eliza and said, "Just admiring the view, I guess."

Eliza looked as if he was about to burst out laughing. Instead, he said, "Wait - did I hear you right? Calico, the most stubborn and relentless Toa I have ever known, Want's to take a stop? And **admire the view?** I think the desert heat has gotten to you, brother."

Calico then, seeing no reason not to, argued back.

"Well, at least thousands of years in stasis let me keep all that!" He yelled unexpectedly. "You've been nothing but impatient and irritating ever since we left that stupid tomb! You are nothing but a little whiner! 'No, this will take too long'! 'No, it can't be done in time'! "No, my foot hurts'!"

Eliza snapped back. "Well, I guess so, brother. But wait - who was the one who got us in stasis in the first place? Oh, that's right, YOU! The entire trip to earth was a terrible idea! The ancients needed us, and we were to weak to help them because of what you did! You couldn't just help them instead of-"

"Wait!" Calico said. "Don't talk."

Eliza looked confused. "Um...Calico? I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything, I just wanted to-"

"No, not THAT, you idiot!" Calico said. "I think I heard something."

Eliza grew quiet. Then, they both heard it; a quiet but audible whispering in some weird unknown language.

"Someone's here," Calico concluded. "Eliza, can you use your kanohi? We need to know what they are saying. It could be important."

"Sure thing," Eliza said. He started to concentrate his Suletu on the beings that were quietly conversing. He has mastered his mask up to the point that he didn't need the mask of translation to figure out languages; he could simply figure it out by using the person's thoughts.

The whispering was indeed a conversation in progress. He managed to catch the last part:

_..and these Toa...are they dangerous?_

_Very. Do you know about the one solider that came into the camp? He had a platoon of seven other men with him in the morning._

_Really? Well, what did Stein say about it?_

_Well, let's say that he was NOT pleased at all with this. He is hell-bent on capturing and eradicating them._

_And that's what we're here for? And the proxies?_

_Yes. That's the entire reason._

"Well, Eliza?" Calico suddenly said. "Is it something important?"

"Um...Calico..." Eliza said in a shaky voice, "maybe we should get out of here...NOW!"

It was too late. The ground below them trembled as the holes filled with opals exploded with several four legged, laser - wielding proxy robots. The robots climbed out of all the holes and started to surround the two startled Toa.

"It's a trap, Eliza!" Calico screamed at the top of his lungs. "Come on, let's get out of here!"

But before they could even move, the proxies suddenly started to tremble. Then, bolts of electricity suddenly spewed from every single one. The bolts all struck the two Toa, stunning them. The pain they tried to endure ended up being to strong for them to handle, and they started to loose consciousness. Before long, the two Toa were lying on the ground, completely immobilized.

One of the proxies aimed their laser at Calico, but before it could fire, a terrible voice said, "Wait! I want them alive!"

All of the proxies turned as one. Their optical sensors gazed upon the captain of the Australian Borog colony.

"I want them to suffer before their demise," Captain Stein said.

* * *

Calico dreamed of a time before time.

He was standing in front of a small stone monument. It had six pillars arising from it, and had a small circular shrine with sand on it. It looked quite natural; despite obviously having been constructed with tools, it had a very...earthy feel to it.

He moved to the sand - covered shrine. The sand looked...familiar...

He then recognized a scene. Him and Eliza, trapped within a cave, no where to run...

_NO, _he thought. _Don't think about that now._

He then saw the sand start to swirl. A familiar landscape formed in the sand - it resembled the island-continent of Australia. Then, the sand shifted again to reveal a small, white opal.

He picked up the opal. He could feel the smooth stone inside his palm. Such fond memories...

He wished he hadn't made such a stupid mistake.

* * *

Calico started to open his eyes. Before long, he snapped awake. He tried to make sense of his surroundings. He felt suspended, like his feet weren't touching the ground. Then, he realized why.

He was bound to a stake.

He tried to squirm out of the bonds to no avail. He looked to his right to find his brother in a similar situation, tied to a stake and trying to squeeze out. He could try to talk to him, say everything's all right. But when things obviously aren't, then there is no point in trying.

"Thank you, Calico." Eliza said.

Calico looked back at him. "Huh? Thank you for what?

Eliza looked amused. "For not saying that everything's all right. I'm not a matoran anymore."

"For the last time-" Calico started.

"-don't read your mind with the damn mask, I KNOW!" Eliza said. "I'm just a little worried that you may be doubting yourself. This isn't your fault; we would have never known about those proxies." Eliza tried to squirm out of the bonds once again. "Where are we, anyway?"

Calico looked around. There was nothing but mounds of dirt everywhere, that had grass growing out of them. The barren desert was looming ahead of a large figure with a box - like head. He then realized that the red dot on the being's head was an eye. He has been listening the whole time.

"Who are you?" Eliza said suspiciously. "Why did you trap us here? We did no harm to you!"

The figure stood and...bowed.

"Hello, Toa," He said "My name is Captain Stein. I would like to welcome you to my home, the late Coober Pedy." He then walked towards the two Toa and said, "You have disrespected me in more than one way."

"Stop speaking in riddles!" Calico said. "Tell us!"

Stein nodded his head. "Very well. I shall tell you." He then sat down before saying, "You've killed my people. You trespassed on the opal fields. You unlawfully disrespected all Borogs." He was quiet for a moment before continuing. "Do you know about this place? There was a time, a few years ago, when this place was populated with good people. There wasn't that many, mind you, only a few thousand. But it thrived never the less."

He then got back up. "It was also my home. Now," he said looking around, observing a distant kangaroo feeding on some grass on one of the mounds, "It is nothing but a wasteland. Now, it is no ones home but mine."

He then reached for a small gun on his back. He pulled it out and pointed it directly at Calico.

"Do you know what this beauty can do?" He said, waving it in front of him. "It can be described as a miniature rail gun, except it fires pure bursts of energy thousands of times per second," He then tilted his head at Calico. "That wouldn't be very pleasant to observe on a beautiful day like this, huh?"

He then pointed it at Eliza. "But it must be done; the punishment for both of your actions is immediate - and excruciating - death."

He then began revving up the gun. It started to glow...

Then it dropped to the ground as he suddenly disappeared into thin air. Where he once stood was a full embodiment of the manipulator, Eliza.

And where Eliza had been bound now was a very stunned Stein.

Eliza picked up the gun and looked at it before throwing it underneath the Captain, who was currently trying to get himself off of the stake. "Ten bucks says you can't get that thing within ten hours." He said. The captain growled before continuing to try and get himself out of the bonds.

"Wh...what?" Calico said. "How...did you..."

"Oh, that?" Eliza said. "A fellow Toa showed me the trick. See, everything can be turned into plasma - even living things. So, what he would do was carefully transform both him and his target into plasma, then manipulate the two masses so that they would switch places. Then, he reconfigured the two and they would re-form back into what they once were, except in different positions. Ta da! Switch teleport!"

Calico, stunned, suddenly smiled. "You are so unpredictable, Eliza."

"I know," Eliza said. "Now let's get out of here." He walked over to him and started to conform the bonds. Soon, the bonds melted into plasma and Calico dropped off the stake.

"Well, things are certainly different here nowadays," Calico said. "We need to find out what is going on around here. We need to stop whatever may be happening."

"You can't stop what has already started," the Captain said, "There's no stopping the war."

Eliza turned to Stein, who was still trapped in the bonds. "What war, Stein?" He said. "There are others on this planet that oppose you?"

The captain seemed to tremble before saying, "Yes. There is another faction that we are fighting. They are more terrible than I could ever imagine, and they make me look like an innocent little mouse."

The two Toa looked at themselves uneasily. Then, Calico looked back at him. "What is this faction? Who should we be afraid of?"

The small light on Stein's face flickered in fear. "The Scaro. The Scaro are the ones to be feared."


	4. 1-4: In Progress

**CHAPTER 1-4: In Progress**

* * *

Agent Alpha sat on a wheelchair, looking outside of his urban home, now the only one standing. The rest of the small town in Ontario, Canada was either missing or in shambles. Any sign that gave even the slightest impression of someone trying to settle there was either hidden really well or didn't exist at all.

Not for him though. Five long years ago, he just sat there and watched in silence as the Borog migrated to the local area. They established a construction facility in Quebec and a base of operations in British Columbia. There was no people left in the country. Only robots and insane zealots.

And that led to Alpha. He held an official document in his hand, one guaranteeing that he give up his rights to the property. Knowing he was going to die, this didn't affect him much.

He looked over his shoulder at another figure in the room, one that gave him the document. When she came to the house, he could tell right away that it definitely wasn't Borog; gold and blue was not part of their color scheme. And they never even give a thought on whether or not the robot will be female.

Instead, it was something much worse.

"Well?" The gold and blue figure asked. "Do you agree to my conditions, old man?"

Alpha had that still look on his face, like he didn't catch her hidden insult. "Well, I'm not so comfortable about this deal. We have all reasons to suspect that it was _you _who stole the watch from Lambda."

The blue and gold figure just scratched her pet Golden retriever that sat next to her. "So?"

"So..." Alpha continued, "we also have reasons to believe that you were the one that poisoned agent Zeta."

The figure looked back at Alpha quite seriously. "Of course it wasn't me! Whoever tricked you into thinking otherwise is a fool who can't look at the facts correctly." She leaned closer to Alpha, putting her mouth near his ear. "But I can tell you who did."

She whispered into his ear. Alpha didn't react, but a look of fear and realization was hidden in his eyes.

She reeled back to her golden retriever. "The only reason that I 'stole' the watch was because I was worried." She looked into his eyes. "Because of the mole." She then picked up the paper and held it in front of her. "This 'deal' is sounding pretty good to me. What about you?"

She waited for him to respond. But she only looked into empty eyes. Apparently, Alpha was too much of an old man at that moment. He died right there.

_ Stubborn man, s_he thought. _He was too clever for me. Allowing himself to die before giving me the satisfaction of a response...**or** a signature._

_ How hopeless._

She took the document and took a pen. Then, she printed an exact copy of his signature, "Christopher Andre".

"Oh Christopher," She said, "You know not to mess with a Toa of Psionics."

* * *

Calico and Eliza made their way to the edge of the beach in Darwin, Australia, with a certain mirth. They have gone a long way since trapping the Borog Captain, Stein, to that stake. They were happy to get moving, and after several hours of trekking, sidetracking, and voracious hunger and thirst, they were finally on track to getting to Indonesia.

At Coober Pedy, they decided to interrogate the Captain after hearing the mysterious words of the Scaro faction leave his box-shaped head. They were extremely curious why the Captain was so afraid of them. Apparently, Captain Stein wasn't in the mood for yelling at anyone at that moment, so he told the story of the Scaro and Borog.

Seven years ago, in 2042, the Australian government was visited by strange people. No one knew where they came from, but what they did know was that when they got inside the parliament, they assassinated every major political figure and didn't leave a single trace. They were outraged by this and accused their neighboring country, Indonesia, of sabotage from several of their trained hyenas. They denied the charges, but some people wouldn't let up.

It was only a few small skirmishes and protests at first, but it soon led to a full-fledged war. Soon, the western hemisphere joined in and the world was thrown into chaos. The U.S., Asia, and Africa fought on the side of the Indonesians, while the countries of Canada, Europe, and South America fought for Australia. Most people referred to it as the third world war.

They had different strategies for winning. The Ausie side believed that superior technology would defeat their rivals. So they built large amounts of body modifications and proxy drones to out-gun their opponents. Thus started the foundation of the Borog race.

The Indonesians had a different way of winning. They believed that the animals they kept and trained to be hunters should be their basis. So, utilizing advanced genetic modifications and mutations, they quite literally bred themselves for war. Soon, they were nothing but wolf-men, lizard-men, lion-men, among others.

They didn't keep these modifications to themselves-they also used their animals, making deadly hybrid killers. The Borog dubbed the race of beings 'Scaro', after the Borog word for 'animal' or 'creature'.

Their main camp was located in the U.S.A., where their main priest, Tsar Forvia Decku (Borog for 'mad priest') resided. There were rumors that the Scaro were planning a major offensive against the Borog, one that could quite possibly change the course of the war. Since they suspected that they were planning this 'offensive' in sub-Saharan Africa, their main mutagen construction site, the Ausie Borogs were kept on high alert and warned their allies in Europe to do the same.

That led to the two Toa. They figured that if they could stop this 'offensive' from taking place, then they could try and stop this war. The first step was Indonesia, since the main Scaro trafficking site was located there. They figured if they could sneak on the site, they could figure out a way to get to Africa.

"Well, Calico," Eliza said enthusiastically, "I guess those years in stasis really paid off, huh? I wanted to see the world, and here we go."

Calico, for once, just smiled. "I guess so, Eliza."

"Now," Eliza said, "first order of business: food. I didn't travel all this way from Coober Pedy to Darwin just to starve to death." Eliza looked around the beach. "Hm...what is there? Grass, grass, cactus, grass, some random rabbit, grass..."

Calico wasn't amused, but he got the point. They wouldn't be able to save the Earth if they both starved to death.

* * *

For once, Calico didn't care about raw rabbit meat.

He always caught rabbits and other rahi when he was in Mata Nui. He considered himself the master hunter. He could just manipulate the sparse amounts of metal inside a living thing and easily catch it.

He thought rabbits tasted good on Mata Nui. But now he was on Earth, and he had a completely different kind of rabbit. One that was twice as good.

Eliza was next to him, eating a small cactus fruit they found by chance. They agreed to half-and-half; it was as sweet as the fruit at home. He knew there was something special about this planet when they found it.

_I guess it's up to us to try and keep this paradise from tearing in half, _he thought.

"Hey, Calico," Eliza said suddenly. "I haven't had time to think about this, but...when Stein was talking to us, he called us 'Toa'. Now, unless they have a word 'Toa' in their language, I just thought of why he knew what we are." Eliza looked back towards a small cactus. "It's not like he would know who we are...he didn't put us in stasis."

Calico, now that he thought about it, was confused. He recalled what Stein said to them...

_I guess I can't say no to two Toa._

How did he know who they were? Were they attacked because the border patrol felt threatened...or because they knew what they were facing?

"Calico," Eliza said. "EARTH TO CALICO. We've got company!"

Calico snapped out of it. He looked towards the direction Eliza was facing. He saw two of those soldiers that they saw in the border patrol, except their prosthetics were blue instead of white. Behind them were at least six of the proxy robots that ambushed them. Then, at the front, stood Captain Stein, gun in hand.

Eliza and Calico stood up instantly. They got in battle-ready poses; Eliza readied a ball of molten-hot plasma in his hand, while Calico prepared his body for a magnetic discharge.

But instead of attacking, Stein just laughed.

"Foolish Toa!" He said in a sarcastic manner. "We're not here to hurt you. If we were, then we would have much..._much_ more soldiers than just eight." He laid the gun down beside him. "We're here to help you get to Indonesia."

The two Toa looked at each other in confusion. This maniac wanted to kill them before, but now he wants to HELP them now?

"What?" Eliza finally said. "Why would you want to help us if you wanted to kill us before?"

Calico wasn't sure if Eliza read his mind or not, but before he could argue with him, Stein answered. "Because, Toa, I originally thought you would just be another thorn in my side. But now..." he said, his voice getting notably softer. "But now I know you want to stop this war."

He saw the look of shock on the Toas' face, so he continued. "To tell you the truth, we are in a tight spot with the Scaro right now. Europe and Australia are the only major Borog bases in the eastern hemisphere. We need help soon or the Borog may be wiped out."

His eye blinked a lot more than it normally did. "My ancestors made a grave mistake. I only carry out their legacy because I felt I had a sense of duty to my people. But after seeing how much this war has really cost my people, well...let's say I started to have second thoughts.

"That's why I wanted to kill you at first. I thought you would kill more of my people without me being able to do anything about it." His head was lower than the cactuses, his eye light very dim.

The two Toa saw the defeated gesture on Stein's body. Calico looked at Eliza; Eliza at Calico. Eliza secretly shared the power of his mask with Calico (His mask was a nuva) and they had a silent conversation.

_He could be telling the truth,_ Calico thought. _He had genuine fear in his voice._

Eliza looked skeptical. _You think? What if he was faking it?_

_We'll find that out, _Calico thought. _We can take care of him then. But now, we may need him._

Eliza looked down before thinking, _Fine. But don't hold it over me if he does._

Calico then turned to the Captain. "We have decided to...agree to this partnership."

Stein looked at Calico. "Thank you ever so. Now, as the Borog say, ESTAGI TOM BANKA!"

He then turned back from where he came from, along with the two soldiers and proxies.

Calico turned to Eliza. "What was he planning to do?"

Eliza responded. "He is planning on building a boat for our voyage. The translation for 'estagi tom banka' is 'time to build'. They will build the boat in a few sunrises, then come here and guide us through the water until we reach Indonesia." Eliza smirked. "He has no plans to betray us."

Calico looked over the horizon. "Sometimes, I like the fact that you picked a Suletu."


	5. 1-5: Expect delay

**CHAPTER 1-5: Expect Delay**

* * *

The Borog Captain, Stein, looked out of the small hole in his Sydney hut. Outside, tens of hundreds of workers were striving to construct a large sailboat. There wasn't that many people in the small colony, but they all managed pretty well. Stein always was proud of his peoples' resilience.

He chuckled a little bit when he spotted a funny sight; a clumsy worker accidentally dropped his entire load on top of some poor soul's foot. He responded with that classic 'get out now or I'll return the favor' glare. The clumsy one immediately grabbed all of his stuff off the irate worker's foot and made a run for it.

He left the small hole and sat on a small dirt mound that acted as a couch. He remembered a time, in Coober Pedy, when he had not just a couch, but the entire setup; a small kitchen, a large window, several paintings, and even a functioning bathroom.

But now it was all dust. All he had known was gone; washed away.

He looked at his clock, one of the things he managed to salvage, and saw it was noon. He looked out of the hole and saw most of the workers start to take a break from their labors. Some took a small can of food and started eating, while others started to converse with each other.

He thanked the gods that they were clear of any danger for a while. When he heard the Toa haven returned, he thought he wouldn't see any of them any more. Once, he thought that they were in danger. Not anymore.

Now, he knows that the Toa wan't to help. They agreed on helping them with the Scaro. They hope they can stop this war, once and for all. At that moment, he thought of one thing.

That Toa of Psionics was wrong.

"Having a nice evening, Stein dear?" a voice suddenly said behind him. "I certainly am."

He cringed upon hearing that voice. He turned slowly to see a blue and gold Toa with a large golden retriever standing next to her. He thought he had suffered against the Scaro when he had to deal with something much more unpredictable...and annoying.

"What are you doing here, Natalia?" Stein rasped. "I thought you had business in Canada."

Natalia tilted her head and looked disappointed. "Unhappy, dear?" she said. "I thought you would be more exited to see me. Especially after that day..."

"Oh, shut it!" Stein said. "What happened that day meant nothing! And _don't_ call me 'dear'!"

"Oh, if you wish..." she said. She sat down on the floor and started petting her golden retriever. "So, when are you going to set sail with the trouble makers?"

He was about to defend himself, but then he remembered. He was dealing with a being that could read minds.

"Well?" she said. "Do you really want me to dig deeper?"

Stein sighed. "A day or two from now. We are planning to get to Indonesia." He looked away before saying, "You know you were wrong about them, don't you Natalia?"

She stood back up. "I'm not going to agree or disagree with that statement," she said as she started to walk out, "but what I _will _ say is that you have set a hell of a time for yourself in a few days!" And with that, she was gone, her dog following.

He sat back down on the dirt mound. He knew that if he wanted to find out her mind, he had to be clever. He looked back outside to see most of the workers start to continue their construction project.

_I hope that 'hell of a time' will be worth all this, _Stein thought.

* * *

**Five days later**

Calico stood at the bow of the ornate Borog ship. Several days of bone - breaking work on the Borog's part had allowed this sailboat to be built, and thus allowed the voyage to take place. The Borog Captain, the two Toa, and, what some would say unfortunate, Borog sailors and soldiers, were on a course to the vast island chain of Indonesia.

The Toa agreed to go below deck whenever they approached a Scaro checkpoint. The Scaro don't like it if they think the Borog are planning an attack, Stein said. He also said, since the Borog were not allowed to enter the Scaro territories, that they had to sneak on the landing site by themselves. This led to some arguing until Stein said that the Toa could go in armed, just in case.

Stein gave Calico a small sword, called a Smiter, and a Borog pulse rifle. Eliza received a large, dual sided Exato baton along with a small taser.

"It may not look like much," Stein said after Eliza groaned in disappointment, "but this thing is feared by most Scaro _and _Borog alike. Without proper care, this thing can, and will, annihilate an entire squad."

Eliza didn't complain that much anymore during the voyage after hearing that.

Calico looked out into the distance, towards one of the islands. On the map, they had to be somewhere in between Sulawesi and Flores, so he figured it was one or the other. Stein said the route around the Philippines was less deep in Scaro territory, thus being much safer, but that the route inside the heart of Indonesia would be less time - consuming.

Their main objective was to arrive in Java, where the main Scaro trafficking camp was located, and sneak on the island when the Scaro and Borog exchange news and goods. From there, they would travel to the upper - most part of Indonesia to gather supplies before heading to Madagascar.

So far, they have approached two Scaro ships, both giving thorough inspections of the Borog boat. Luckily, the Toa stayed safe in the trapdoor that led to a small safe room, free from Scaro detection.

However, this also meant that they have never seen a single Scaro solider. Apart from Stein's vague description, they have no visual knowledge of the beings. They constantly hear the sailors and soldiers alike speak to themselves in rapid Borog when either of the ships leave. Eliza didn't have to read their minds to even guess what they were probably saying.

"Having a nice ride, Toa?" Stein said to Calico behind him. "Not seasick, are you?"

Calico turned and said, "If seasickness involves getting absolutely stunned and amazed by what I'm seeing, then get a doctor up here."

Stein chuckled, which was a little weird to hear because of his prosthetics. "We all get a little struck by the view sometimes, don't we all?" Stein took a spot besides Calico on the deck. "So, where's Eliza? Not getting into trouble, I hope?"

"Not at all, Captain," Calico responded. "He just got dragged off by the crew. Said they were going to teach him how to shoot an arrow."Calico stared at the blue water. "He loves to learn new shenanigans..."

Stein looked at him a little harder. "Did you have a home before this one, Toa?"

Calico continued to stare at the water. "Yeah...a long time ago..." He looked up at Stein. "but this is my home now. I am sworn to protect my home, no matter what."

Stein nodded. "You have great courage and honor, Toa," It was now his turn to look into the blue water. "some qualities I wish I had."

Calico looked back into the water before looking back at Stein. "So...what was it like? Coober Pedy? Was it like what it is now?"

"Not exactly," Stein said, "it had, well, a larger population than just one. It was also more than just random plies of grass, dirt, and kangaroos. Once, it had...**life**," he then looked back at Calico. "But it's like this now...because of this damn war." He slammed his fist into the bow. "Everyone I knew, everyone I loved...just...gone..."

"CALICO!" Eliza suddenly screamed. "CHECK OUT MY AWESOME ARCHERY SKILLS!"

Calico and Stein looked out to the deck, where Eliza stood. He had a high - tech version of the classic bow and arrow in his hand, along with a target that had three arrows clean in its center.

"I don't care about that taser obliterating everything anymore!" Eliza said energetically. "Give me this thing and I won't have a care in the world!"

"On second thought," Calico said, "I'd better extract him before he ends up _actually _obliterating everything." He started to go towards the deck before looking in Stein's direction. "You coming, captain?"

Stein looked down and shook his head. "No, Toa," He said, "I need some time alone...to think."

"Okay then," Calico said, "Yell if you need me." He then ran towards Eliza, ready to apprehend him if he had to.

* * *

Stein leaned over the bow with a certain sadness...or confusion. He could never decide which was more fitting to his situation. He looked into the water, thinking about what he had said, back with Calico. Thought about its relevance.

_...everyone I loved..._

He wasn't so sure about that. He knew that deep within his box-shaped head, some part of him knew that wasn't entirely true.

_That day...'especially after that day'..._

He tried to get himself to forget what had happened between them. But, as always, it came back.

_She let her guard down, I let mine down. We looked at the sunset on that hill in Coober Pedy. it was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. S__he was just there, looking so nice...then...the words just slipped from my mouth._

_"I care about you..."_

_She looked at me like she was about to slap me. But instead, she came closer..._

_and..._

_..._

He came back to reality. It was harder to forget that moment every time he remembered.

Then, he realized, he didn't want to forget.

* * *

Calico and Eliza were sleeping inside the cabin along with the rest of the crew. It was approaching midnight in Indonesia, and they agreed to hit the hay a few hours ago.

However, there was the island of Java in the distance, awaiting their arrival. The Captain said it would only take a matter of hours to get to the trafficing camp from their current position, so they were glad they could have some sleep.

On Java, in the capitol of Jakarta, there was also others awaiting their arrival. The Scaro sentries, both of them having scaly skin and manes running down their longer - than - normal necks, ran to the inside of the tower and out into the open. They jogged until they reached a small camp site that was not far from the heart of the city.

The two sentries walked through the camp, encountering many colorful characters; an ape - like hyena man with a pet mongoose - wolf, two wild pigs with long claws of an eagle, and a small cat man that looked like it could pass for a baby snow leopard.

They continued through the throng of Scaro until they reached a much more elegant looking tee - pee than the others in the camp. They cleared with the two slavering lion - jackals guarding the entrance before getting inside.

Inside the tee - pee laid another strange lizard with a long mane; however, he looked much more menacing and seemed much more inclined to break your neck if he felt like it. He also wore a small gown, one symbolizing Scaro royalty.

"Sire," one of the sentries said in a raspy, alien voice. "There is a Borog vessel approaching from the west, assumingly from Australia."

The royal Scaro lifted his head towards the two sentries. "Dangerous by any means?" He responded.

The two sentries exchanged glances before one of them said, "No, sire. The two patrols that had contact with the ship came up with no sign of attack planning by the Borog."

The royal Scaro looked suspicious, but continued. "Fine then. Prepare the docks for their arrival. We shall see what they have in store for us Scaro."


	6. 1-6: Stowaways

**CHAPTER 1-6: Stowaways**

* * *

Eliza found out that seasickness wasn't fun the hard way.

He was just sitting on the deck, having some relaxation time, when he had a pain in his stomach. He tried to get to the bow before it was too late, but he was too unfortunate. He was not pleased at all with the experience.

For one, his face may or may not have turned green. When in contrast to his white Suletu and his deep orange colors, it didn't look overall...pleasant. And the fact that the Borog were complete wusses about cleaning it off the deck did not make it any better.

He reached over to the small Exato staff he laid on the side of the deck and put it back on his shoulder. Then, he walked back over to the bow and looked at the vast water leading up to the beach.

Calico and Stein were organizing an escape plan in case their plan ended up failing. It was simple enough; if one or the other of the Toa end up being discovered, they would run to the coast, where they would hide out until the sailboat arrived.

However, they were hoping for peace in this mission. Captain Stein had already lost too many of his people to the Scaro army, and he wasn't planning on re-starting that dilemma.

However, that was as far from Eliza's mind as seasickness could allow it.

He leaned over the side of the ship (just in case) and tried to concentrate on the island of Java that loomed ahead. In a few hours, they would dock on the capitol of Jakarta, where the Scaro camp is located. Stein assured the Toa that the Scaro and Borog are in a vow of peace unless one or the other attacks or is suspected of planning an attack. The Borog, despite thinking the Scaro were planning something, did not want to engage in conflict at the moment. They were risking that very peace to stop the war from shedding any more blood.

Eliza hoped that it will be all worth it in the end.

He was so concentrated on the ocean that he barely noticed Calico approaching him from behind. "Well, Eliza," he said, "We have better get below deck before any Scaro notice us."

Eliza, unfortunately, grew green again.

"After you extract your...stuff." Calico said.

Eliza looked at Calico, obviously not in the mood for jokes. "Don't pick on be because I'm the one who got seasick..."

"I'm not, I'm just worried about the other crew's well-being." Calico said. "Now come on, we've got some lions and wolves we have to sneak by."

* * *

_Land ho!_ one of the sailors yelled in Borog. _Java approaching up ahead!_

Stein walked up to the bow of the ship. Up ahead, he could see two sentry towers on the Jakarta beach. In each one, there was a lizard-looking being with a long mane on their long-ish necks. They looked ahead to the ship before signaling many other Scaro on the ground to ready the ladders and docking boards.

The boat landed a little heavily on the sandy beach, but the boards the Scaro placed braced the impact of the collision. They applied the ladders, and in turn, Captain Stein climbed down.

Among the grounded Scaro, one stood out from the rest. The lizard-king walked up to the Borog Captain and bowed with his arms crossed on his chest-a traditional Scaro greeting.

"Hello, Captain..." he rasped, "again, we meet..."

Stein looked nervous, but started talking anyway. "Well, nice to see you to, Lyarch."

The lizard got up, an annoyed look on his face. "I do not like being called 'overzealous' once again, thank you..."

"Well, save your breath, lizard," Stein replied. "We have some news to share...and some inventory that may be of some interest to you."

Lyarch was quiet for a little before responding. "Very well...just don't try anything..."

Stein nodded and yelled up in Borog to the sailors. The sailors then proceeded below deck, when some emerged with lead-lined boxes. Some others picked up small bottles and pouches of spices and construction material.

Scaro and Borog, for this one time, intermingled in the crowd while they bargained with various packets of mace, thyme, bottles of grease, nails, wood, and entire boxes of heavy duty tools and metals.

"Well, Stein..." Lyarch said, "What is this 'news' you wish to share with me?"

Before the Toa got below deck, they wanted Stein to tell the Scaro something-that the Toa were awakened. Stein, at first, thought it was a terrible idea. They convinced him when they said to tell them that they were captured, but managed to escape and were headed to Java. This appealed to Stein because if the Toa WERE found out, then they wouldn't immediately blame the Borog, thus squeezing them out of danger.

"Well, it involves something that I have been dreading for a while." Stein said.

Lyarch looked worried. "You mean...the Toa?"

Stein nodded. "Yes...they are awake," he tried to look as terrified as he possibly could. "We captured them a few weeks ago, but they escaped, taking some of our men with them. They were headed north, to Indonesia."

Lyarch nodded. "Yes...I shall keep a lookout," He looked down before looking back at Stein. "Speaking of which...how is she?"

Stein recoiled as if he had been shot. "Wha...I told you not to mention her..._EVER."_

"I know, I know..." Lyarch said with a hidden chuckle, "I'm just worried. You won't be fit for this war if you keep stressing over this thing. You should know this; it happened before, hasn't it?"

Stein looked out into the crowd. He saw some suspicious glances cross the throng of Borog and Scaro. The Borog were worried about getting attacked by giant wolf-tigers, while the Scaro were worried about getting electrocuted by some nasty contraption. This led to a very quick-and tense-trading session.

_Maybe__ he's right, _Stein thought. _This is taking control. If I'm gone, then this will never happen again._

"Ah...Aussies and their constant deep thought..." Lyarch said. "Y'now, **mate, **if you continue with this, then I don't think I can help you with retaining peace. I think half of my men looks ready to strangle yours."

Stein looked out into the crowd and saw something; a Scaro lion-leopard was arguing with a sailor for not getting his proper amount of mace. The sailor was convinced it was a fair trade, but the Scaro was not. They looked ready to release some steam right there.

"Okay there, Lyarch," Stein said, "Let's take care of it."

The two leaders walked down to the quarreling soldiers. Stein, however, looked out to the vast forest of Java that blocked the view of most of the island. In that direction, he saw two glowing eyes in the brush towards the forest.

He nodded to the eyes, and the eyes nodded back.

* * *

**Minutes before**

Eliza and Calico sat inside the bowel of the ship, not breathing or **anything**. They heard several voices outside that signified the Scaro and Borog have started their trading. That was their signal to move.

They quietly moved out of the trapdoor and inside the crew's quarters. From there, an odd smell entered their nostrils.

"Eliza..." Calico whispered. "What did I tell you..."

"Just forget it!" Eliza whispered back. "You know how the Borog are! They couldn't risk me being seen!"

Calico looked disgusted. "Fine...just...lead me to where it ISN'T lying on the ground..."

Eliza guided Calico away from the source of the horrid smell and started to climb out onto the deck.

Being careful to stay crouched on the deck, they moved quietly towards the water. Calico, so that they wouldn't make any noise upon entering the water, created two small gravitational fields around them both. Taking a furtive look at the trading soldiers, they went to the back of the ship and dropped into the water. With the water now just being suspended around them harmlessly, they moved on to the west side of the beach without a trace.

Emerging inside a secluded cove, they went back over to the beach, staying inside the dense jungle. They both saw Stein and a Scaro (Eliza said some...unpleasant things after seeing that Scaro) walking over to the crowd. Stein happened to look off into the trees and see Calico. He nodded, and Calico nodded back.

"Well, Eliza, we'd better get to Sumatra," Calico whispered, "We need to get to Thailand from there. After we get to Singapore, they'll pick us up and set a course to Madagascar."

Eliza just looked at him like he knew already.

"You read my mind, didn't you?" Calico said without surprise.

"Yep." Eliza said.

Calico rolled his eyes. "Whatever, let's get moving."

And with that, they moved deeper into the undergrowth. They were pretty determined, even if the journey took hours.

Several hours in the forest, however, led to nothing of interest. The only signs of life they found were about a hundred of those gukko-looking things and a lot of insect like creatures. They were close, but not so close that they wouldn't have to walk for at least another half-hour.

The Toa were resting on a rock next to a small waterfall; their meal, some blue gukko and some thornaxx looking fruit, was the only thing they had since the Darwin rabbits and fruit. They enjoyed it, especially the thoranaxx; it was like the one at home, minus the spines.

That small meal gave them the energy they required. "Well, that was boring," Eliza said, getting up from his spot. "We've better get moving. The Scaro camp, according to the navigators, is pretty close up ahead."

Calico gripped his Smiter blade on its hilt a little harder than normal. "Well, I guess it it. I just hope that nothing bad happens to us...or Captain Stein or the others." He got up from the rock. "Well, what are we waiting for, let's get moving!"

He turned only to find the pointy end of a spear sticking right at his face.

He turned and saw Eliza getting the staring treatment from a wild hog-eagle. Calico looked up to see their attackers; a wolf man with scales of a lizard and a lion man that looked more reminiscent of a rhino.

"What are you doing here, trespassers?" The Scaro wolf-lizard said. "Or should I say...stowaways?"


	7. 1-7: My best acquaintance

**CHAPTER 1-7: My Best ****Acquaintance**

* * *

The forests of Jakarta, Indonesia, were still. The only noises that were present was the slight hum of birds and the buzz of a thousand bugs and insects that roam the land in the dead of night.

Well, for a while, at least.

Soon, a rumble roared through the quiet forest. Then, a figure dashed through the undergrowth, disturbing two nesting flies and a bird about to strike its prey. Several other figures followed; a small eagle-pig and two lion-jackals.

The running figure dashed over a fallen log and accelerated into a small clearing. The creatures had other ideas, running around two small trees that would take them to the other side of the clearing. With that, they charged at their prey.

The figure, taken by surprise, tried to skid to a stop, but instead caught his foot on a small piece of vine and tripped. The creatures went over there to finish him of.

But all of a sudden, the pig stopped. It started to growl at the other creatures. The two lions looked back at the pig, confused that its sudden anger was now directed at them.

At that moment, a large dog leaped into the clearing, jumping onto one of the lions. The pig immediately attacked the other one, which took it by surprise.

The lion swiped a large claw at the pig, but it dodged and kicked its razor-sharp clawed foot right into the lion's midsection. The lion reeled back, three large gashes in its flank. It tried jumping back onto the pig, but it sidestepped, then rammed it as hard as it could into the lion. It crashed to the ground, bleeding from its flank. Its breaths became quick and shallow.

At the other side, the dog was struggling to get the other lion off its back. The lion, in turn, tried to grip its claws on the dog's fur. The dog then rolled on its back, crushing the opposer and getting it off. It jumped back up and quickly dodged a swipe from the dog. It slashed the dog's muzzle, and it started to bleed. The dog, now distracted, stumbled, exposing his weak underbelly. The lion prepared for a finishing strike.

All of a sudden, the pig rammed into the lion like he did with the other one. The lion, stunned, tried to get up, but not before the dog sank his teeth into its throat. It struggled, but it was no use. The lion eventually went limp.

The pig and the dog both looked at each other before looking back to the chased. He was still sitting there, shaken by what he has seen. He didn't look normal; he had prosthetics on his hands and feet, along with a large white collar.

The creatures looked at him; he looked back.

"Th...thank...y...you..." he muttered.

The creatures, not understanding, growled at him.

"Well," a voice said, "I didn't know that this was the reason they ran off..."

At that moment, a figure revealed herself. She looked rather feminine with a gold and blue color scheme - and she was clearly mechanical.

The figure suddenly grew scared. The dog and pig went up to and together they faced the Borog.

"A Borog speaking English?" Natalia said. "This must be my lucky day..."

* * *

Great.

They said they wouldn't screw up. And they did. Big time.

It all started when they got captured by the Scaro. They thought that getting captured was bad, but that getting bonded and being forced to play 'follow the leader' was far worse.

Calico felt uncomfortable with all the knots from his bond digging into his wrist. He looked forward at the wolf-lizard that captured them. He was conversing with the lion-rhino and keeping an eye on the eagle-hog. He would tug on the collar of the beast if it started wandering off.

Eliza was not holding up any better. He was currently locked in a staring contest with a small bush, in which he was apparently bored enough to do so. If they passed by the bush, he would lock eyes with another random piece of brush.

Calico ached to know what the Scaro were thinking. He turned to Eliza, hoping to make eye contact. Unfortunately, he was looking in the other direction, eyes on a dead tree stump.

Luckily, he thought of a way to get his attention.

"You know..." Calico whispered loudly to him, "You could get us BOTH out of here...like, _right now."_

"Hey!" The wolf said. "I can hear you back there! I'm not deaf!"

Calico looked at him, annoyed. "Oh, can you now? Of course since I thought a WOLF was deaf, I would say anything I wanted!"

The wolf stopped and turned to Calico. Then, he took his spear and whacked Calico's head. Surprised, he stumbled into Eliza, who finally looked at Calico.

"And I thought I was the one who got in trouble..." He muttered.

Calico, now on the ground with a face full of dirt, stood up and glared at Eliza. "This isn't the time, Eliza!" He then leaned forward over to Eliza's ear. "Have you thought of anything? Is this the time do use your 'ability'?" He whispered.

Eliza whispered back. "I haven't thought it out exactly...but maybe if you distract them some more, I can think of a way to get them by surprise."

"Hey!" the wolf yelled. "We don't have time to wait! Shut your yapin' and get over here!"

Calico and Eliza looked back to their captors. They ran back and trailed them once more.

They got moving again. Soon, it was nearly nighttime. The sun was just starting to set on the Java coast as the evening ended. If they were just simple bystanders, they may have stopped to take a look at the beautiful sunset.

However, the two Toa had different ideas.

Eliza looked over to Calico. After a few moments of locking eyes, Eliza finally nodded; this was Calico's signal to start.

"So..." he started. "Why did you capture us again?"

For a while, the wolf said nothing. Then, he spoke. "Because you trespassed."

"Really? That's the only reason?" Calico said. "Is it because you think we're some sort of Borog contraption?" For a comical effect, he increased the magnetic energy in his eyes to make them glow. "Because I'm here to tell you that's not true."

The wolf was silent again before responding. "Well, _I _don't believe that. But we'll deal with them soon enough; for now, we've got you to worry about."

Calico tilted his head, his eyes still glowing. "Well, did they mention something about Toa?"

"No..." the wolf said. "If they did, then I would be doing something...much more unpleasant to you right now."

Calico laughed. "Oh, so if I said I was a Toa, then you would try to kill me?" he decreased the glow of his eyes. "I would think that rather unwise."

The wolf stopped. He gripped the spear in his hands, which they started to turn a little white. The lion-rhino, concerned, looked at him. "Um, sir? Are you okay?"

He then turned and readied the spear in his hand. "Yes, I know who you are. I know that you came here with the Borog. And now, you're going to suffer." He then reeled the spear behind him, ready to strike.

"Eliza, NOW!" Calico yelled.

What the Scaro didn't know was that as Calico was talking to them, Eliza was concentrating on building up a plasma charge. When Calico gave the word, he crouched down and released all of the energy he stored. What happened next stunned all.

The entire area turned a bright shade of orange, so bright that it even made Calico and Eliza stumble and fall. Then, the heat of the plasma-induced blast set in. It was so terrible that the two Scaro started to scramble all over the place. The eagle-pig suddenly ran for it, dashing into the undergrowth.

After the light faded, there was the four beings just lying there, covering their heads. Other than that, there was nothing else. Within the entire radius of the blast, there was no more trees. All the trees, when exposed to the raw plasma, simply disintegrated. All that was left was a small piece of vine, which Eliza landed on and provided as cover for.

Several minutes passed before Calico dared to move a muscle. Calico, cautiously, stood up from where he was laying. Eliza, already up, began to brush off dust left from a small bush that the vine originated from.

"Okay..." Calico said, "When you said 'less gruesome than a nova blast', I guess I should have considered that you said _less_..."

"You can thank me later," Eliza said. "We've escaped so far, but I won't expect this to go on for much longer."

Calico nodded. Then, he turned to the two Scaro.

Then, he noticed they were not there anymore.

"Uh-oh," Calico said. "I don't think we'll be getting a break anymore."

Eliza looked at Calico. "They must have snuck off when we had our backs turned." Eliza then looked confused. "Why didn't they try attacking us then?"

"Remember," Calico said. "that wolf said, 'I know who you are'." He sat down, a look of dread in his eyes. "And we said we wouldn't screw up."

Eliza looked to where the Scaro once were. "When they captured us, they called us 'stowaways'. That is a name for beings that are found catching a ride on a boat." Eliza then walked over to where the wolf was. Then, he leaned over and grabbed a small pair of binoculars.

"They've been spying on us ever since we got to Jakarta," Eliza said. "They must've followed us into the forest when we started heading to Singapore."

Calico looked concerned. "If they went over to their leader, then it means something." He then looked up to the moon, where its glow illuminated the entire area. "This means we just declared war. The Borog are going to be stuck fighting for their lives again."

Eliza went over to Calico and placed his arm over his shoulders. "Don't worry brother," Eliza said, his eyes glowing. "They're not alone this time. Let's go and give those Scaro a hard time, eh brother?"

* * *

Stein sat in the Singapore coast, waiting. He looked at the clock inside the bowels of the ship; It read 10:34. They were supposed to be here three hours ago.

He leaned back into his chair. He has always considered the thought of capture, but it quickly left his mind. He figured the Toa were better suited to defending themselves if they had to.

What he feared was more than that. What he feared was that she found them.

He didn't tell the crew, but before they left to Singapore, he saw her again. She would've been easy to spot with her colors, but that is no problem if your a Toa of Psionics and surrounded by weak-minded people. She was watching the two Toa, and she followed them into the undergrowth.

He shuddered at the thought of what she could have done to them. He wasn't sure that she would go as far as to kill them, but she would think of something that would keep them out of commission for a long while.

_Sir, _one of the sailors unexpectedly said. _We've got company. A Scaro patrol, coming fast._

Scaro? Stein turned to the sailor. "What?" he said. "Tell them I will be out in but a moment."

_Of course, sir. _The sailor then exited the small hidden area, off the ship.

If the Scaro were here, then at least it wasn't her.

He got up and exited the hideout. He climbed onto the deck and looked out onto the beach. On it, there was Lyarch, along with several lizard-lions.

He got down and walked up to him. "What is the problem, sire?" Stein said in a cautious voice. "We will only be here in Singapore for the night. In the morning, we will return to Australia-"

"Oh, cut the bullshit, Stein!" Lyarch said angrily. "You petty Borog aren't going anywhere until we find those Toa!"

"What do you mean?" Stein said with a hint of fear. He was doomed. The Scaro found out.

"'What do you mean'?" Lyarch said. "What I mean, you parasite, is that I know everything! Two of my scouts saw your precious 'Toa' leave the ship you arrived in! They found them, but they were stupid enough to exhaust themselves to drive my men away and report everything to me!"

He then looked down in a sign of disgust. "You Borog are so dishonorable! If I had the chance, I would kill you myself! This peace is over!"

Stein was left speechless. During times like these, he always finds words to explain himself. But, when dealing with Scaro, his mind takes care of the talking. After a while, it spoke.

"Then so be it."

He then drew his gun, aimed, and fired.


End file.
